A Quiet Walk at the Quarry

I have walked the trails at Mead’s Quarry once before and I probably won’t again, unless I REALLY feel the need to take someone there. Y’all, that Tharp Trace Trail is JUST THAT HARD.
That’s one of the reasons Emily and I waited until October to tackle this set of trails. We wanted no part of climbing and climbing and CLIMBING when it was hot. There are other good reasons for doing this hike in the fall or winter. Mead’s Quarry has become an extremely popular destination and it was crowded all summer. On the chilly and cloudy day we were there, we had it all to ourselves. And if you are going to do all that climbing, you don’t want a lot of leaves obscuring your view, something that is not so much a problem this time of year.
We started on the lower trail which takes you nearer to the water. There’s even a stairway to walk down to get really close. The first part of the trail is full of reminders that the activity here used to be of a very different kind, back when Meads was supplying stone for buildings in our Nation’s Capital.
The first time I ever saw a quarry lake (at Fort Dickerson), I was absolutely amazed. They don’t get much less amazing no matter how often I see them.
Now I want you to look closely at the following picture. At that sheer ridiculously high wall. And I don’t know whether you can see that there is actually a semblance of a path, presumably for people who do not value their lives.
We did NOT take that path. We took this one, which was safer but still plenty challenging:
Well, we knew when we were standing at the bottom of that wall that we were going to be climbing because we could tell from our South Knox Trail App that the trail ran right along the top of it. So when we got to that point we thought we were finished climbing.
Y’all, we were WRONG. We walked and walked and walked and WALKED. (I should be saying climbed.) This was the most strenuous hike of them all, even though it’s only one mile long. Every time we thought we must be near the top, we were SO WRONG.
I already gave away the view pictures at the beginning of this post, so you know the climb was worth it. And near the end there was a special delight: if hiking in the Urban Wilderness makes me happy–and surely by now you know it does–then what could make me happier? How about an actual GRAVEYARD on an Urban Wilderness Trail? Oh, yes, there is! Stanton Cemetery, which will be the subject of my next post, is RIGHT THERE. Stay tuned!For more South Knoxville Walking Adventures, see below:Walking in South Knoxville IWalking in South Knoxville IIWalking in South Knoxville IIIWalking in South Knoxville IVWalking in South Knoxville VWalking in South Knoxville VIWalking in South Knoxville VIIWalking in South Knoxville VIIIWalking in South Knoxville IX

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I feel pretty good when I read this list.~ A Grandparent’s Wisdom on Parenting ~

1. Let your child be a child. Children are not little adults.

2. Don’t have too many rules, especially when they’re little. They’re not going to remember them all anyway.

3. Pick your battles. It won’t work to make an issue out of everything your child does that you don’t like.

4. The greatest gift you can give your child besides your love is your time. Whenever possible, interrupt what you are doing to take time for them. Many things you need to do can be put off until later but many things your child does only happen once, and you don’t want to miss them.

5. Don’t micromanage your child’s behavior. It isn’t necessary (or productive in the long run) to try to control everything he or she says or does.

7. Kids get tired. When they do, it’s usually futile to try to reason with them to get them to do what you want.

8. Don’t say things to your own child that you would never dream of saying to someone else’s child.

9. Whatever stage your child is in, remember: this, too, shall pass, and they will move on to another stage. (This may be better or worse than the previous one!)

10. Don’t let mealtime become a battle zone. No child has ever starved to death yet because they didn’t eat everything on their plate.

11. Read to your child.

12. When your child starts talking, listen. What they say is important to them, and kids have great things to say.

13. Spend some time tucking your child into bed each night.

14. It’s good to find a church family to help you raise your child. You need others to support you. Your child needs to establish a good foundation of values and truth. If he or she doesn’t get this early in life, they might get it later and from someone else you may not like.

15. Take time every day to enjoy your child and relish this role God has blessed you with.

(Postscript: my dad says some of these are things he did, and some are things he wishes he’d done. ❤️) …

Timeline Photos"Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you." – Luke 14 #SundayGospel bit.ly/2ZpzEtS…

"Arsonists have set God’s Cathedral aflame. In the Amazon rainforest, home to hundreds of thousands of animal species, 40,000 plant species, and nearly a million indigenous people, fires are raging, destroying the ecological buttresses of one of the most biodiverse and important ecosystems in the world. These creatures are a testament to God’s good creation, a living, breathing cathedral, shaped by the evolutionary forces of God, and entrusted to human hands." …

"Baby loss is not just a story of grief, of pain and of tears, its a beautiful story of love and of celebration.

So let’s scream from the rooftops that all children matter, those that are here and those that we desperately miss."I haven’t shared this picture for quite some time so wanted to post it again this evening. These are my children…the ones that ran ahead and the ones who I get the honour to raise.

Someone said to me in an interview recently well you are the mother of two, I kindly corrected them. I am the mother of 7, just because five of my children didn’t get to grow up on the earth, doesn’t stop them from existing.

I also wanted to say this…Baby loss is not just a story of grief, of pain and of tears, its a beautiful story of love and of celebration.

So let’s scream from the rooftops that all children matter, those that are here and those that we desperately miss. ❤️

I am so unbelievably touched that SO many people have liked and shared this image, THANK You. Please feel free to also like my page and see future posts and quotes, I would love for you to become a FB friend x